1

2
 Rebel in the desert
a historical materialist look at the life and times
of God’s Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him)

3
Jahiliya

In the sixth century CE, the Arabian Peninsula was a barren dry desert. The sun
burned relentlessly, the sand scraped and from time to time blows through the air like
a storm of cutting razor blades. Cities or villages are rare. Most people who live there
are nomads. They roam with their flocks, hoping to find some plants here or there for
their sheep and their camels to eat. This is the country in which Islam was born more
than fourteen centuries ago.
At that time the Hijaz, the western part of the peninsula, was dominated by the ruling
tribe in the wealthy trading city of Mecca. These rulers, the Quraishites, had settled in
the city of Mecca since the fifth century and from there they had grown in influence.
They dominated the trade routes that traversed the country. The tribe was formed as an
amalgamation of different nomadic clans, under the leadership of Qusayy ibn Kilab,
an ambitious young Arab. Not only did he manage to merge the different clans into
one tribe through marriage ties, he also found the way to make Mecca the main
trading city of the Hijaz. For this he used the Ka'ba, the cube-shaped building in the
middle of the city.
Since time immemorial, the Ka'ba was a shrine to which pilgrims from all regions
flocked for the Hajj, a pilgrimage honored by all Arab tribes. It was reported that
Abraham and his son Ishmael built the building brick by brick. Qusayy understood
very well that whoever controlled the Ka'ba ruled the city. He rearranged the city and
allow the most important Qurayishites to live closest to the shrine. He himself built his
house against the Ka'ba, the only access to the building was through his house.
Anyone who wanted to walk around the Ka'ba - an important part of the ritual of Hajj
- immediately had to walk around the house of Qusayy. Not only was he the political
ruler of the city, he was also the supreme religious authority.
To emphasize the dominant position of the trading city of Mecca, Qusayy had all the
idols of the various Arab clans housed in the Ka'ba. From then on, every Arab tribe
who wanted to worship their own tribal god, were obliged to make a pilgrimage to
Mecca. This city became the undisputed religious center of the entire Arab world. This
allowed the Qurayshites to gain a monopoly on the sale of goods and services to the
many pilgrims.

4
The whole city was sanctified by the presence of the holy Ka'ba. Mecca became a
neutral zone within which fighting was prohibited. This guaranteed security attracted
more and more merchants every year, who used the Hajj to sell their merchandise.
After some years, all the towns in the region started to adapt their annual markets to
the Hajj season. The ever-stronger city of Mecca increasingly determined the religious
and economic rhythm of life throughout Hijaz. The Ka'ba literally became the center
of the Arab world and the Qurayshites firmly controlled this center. In a few years
time this tribe grew into a class of wealthy merchants, who owed everything to their
cube-shaped sanctuary and to the numerous pilgrimages of all Arab tribes.
This heralded a number of major changes in Meccan society. The wealthy Qurayshite
elite, consisting of clans of simple nomads until a few generations earlier, now became
a new ruling class. The new life in Mecca was completely different from what they
had known before. The customary law that had grown among Arab nomads became
less and less suited to the new situation.
The harsh and difficult nomadic way of life in the desert had created its own set of
laws and customs. This customary law had existed for centuries and was well adapted
to that way of life. In the desert, possession of goods was of little value. In contrast, a
strong form of solidarity within the tribe was important for survival. The whole clan
was no stronger than the weakest members, so they were the ones who needed extra
protection. This had nothing to do with lofty ideals of equality and fraternity, but it
was a dire necessity. Only then could the clan continue to exist.
Moreover, the nomads had no written laws or sacred books presenting a moral code.
Disputes were therefore resolved under the law of retaliation. This law may seem
barbaric to us, but it served precisely to counteract the barbarity of an ongoing
struggle. The law of retaliation stipulated that anyone who had been harmed by
another could retaliate by extracting exactly the same amount in compensation or
inflicting exactly the same amount of damage on the other. The penalty for the theft of
a camel was the payment of exactly one camel. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
Descent was through a matrilineal system in many nomadic tribes. Not the father, but
the mother of a child determined his ancestry. It didn't really matter who the father
was. Women could have different husbands, men could have different wives. In
practice, men and women had almost equal rights, although the sheik of the tribe was
always male.
This customary law was under severe pressure in the developing trading city of
Mecca. The wealth of the Qurayshites made it increasingly difficult to practice
internal solidarity. In the city, the wealthy elite were also much less bound by the fate

5
of the weaker. The clan was no longer as weak as its weakest members. The new
rulers were therefore much less inclined to use their property to supply the entire tribe.
The egalitarian tendency of nomadic society disappeared and made way for a class
society in which social status was determined by property. At the same time, the lives
of widows, orphans, beggars and slaves became increasingly difficult as the wealth of
the ruling class grew. These weakest groups were also excluded from inheritance law
and could not obtain money or goods in any way.
This situation intensified when the rich Meccans began to lend money to their poorer
fellow citizens. For the poor this was the only way to obtain money and goods, for the
rich it was an extra source of income. These loans had to be repaid at a heavy interest
rate. When the debtor was unable to do so, they became a slave to the creditor. In this
way the wealth of the Qurayshites even more became a source of poverty and misery
for a large part of the population.
In this class society, the law of retaliation also took on a very different character. The
eye of a wealthy Quraishite was of course much more valuable than that of a beggar or
an orphan without protection. The absolute and inviolable rule of the wealthy
merchant class increasingly replaced the egalitarian law of retaliation.
The increasing importance of property also created the need for a watertight law of
inheritance. The possessing husband wanted to make sure that his wife's children were
also his children. The matrilineal descent gave way to the patrilineal descent. The
position of men became more important and at the same time women saw their rights
wither more and more. As in many societies, patriarchy arose along with property and
wealth. Women were increasingly seen as cattle that could be traded. They had no
right of inheritance, could hardly acquire property in any way, and were above all at
the whim of their husband or their father. Since it was considered a shame to have a
daughter, many girls were even buried alive right after birth.
By the sixth century, Mecca had therefore turned into a distinct class society with a
ruling class, the Quraishites, who turned all laws in their favor. Their economic and
religious monopoly allowed them to dominate the entire Hijaz. Their wealth was
based on taxing the merchants and pilgrims in their city, on the work of the less
fortunate, and on the usurious interest they could charge on loans to their poorer
fellow citizens. The Islamic historians call this period the time of Jahiliya, of
ignorance. It is the time before the advent of Islam, the time before the coming of
God's Messenger who would point the way to a new and better society.

6
From orphan to successful trader

In that society a child was born around the year 570, a child that would change the
face of the whole world. Even before his birth, his father Abdullah ibn Abdul Mutalib
had already died. His mother Amina gave the child the name 'Mohammed' which
means 'The Much Praised One', a name that apparently did not exist before among the
Arabs.
When Mohammed was six years old, his mother also died. From then on, his
grandfather, Abdul Mutalib ibn Hashim, took care of him. This man, who was at that
time the sheikh of the Quraishites, loved his grandson dearly. One day when little
Mohammed sat down on the bed intended for the sheik, his uncles wanted to chase
him off. "Leave my grandson alone," said the sheik, "I swear to God that he will hold
an important position later."
Abdul Mutalib himself would not live long enough to see this prophecy fulfilled.
When Mohammed was eight years old, his grandfather also died. Now it was his uncle
Abu Talib ibn Abdul Mutalib who took care of the boy. Abu Talib was a merchant and
influential man within the Quraishite tribe. He treated Muhammad in the same way as
his own children and protected him. That protection lasted until his death, almost forty
years later. Mohammed learned the trade of a trader from his uncle and from a young
age he was allowed to join the trading caravans that his uncle sent out.
Yet it was not easy for young Mohammed as an orphan. He had almost no property of
his own and could only survive by being maintained by his loving uncle. This made
him realize at a very young age that Meccan society might mean wealth and power to
the rich Qurayishites, but at the same time poverty and dire misery for the weak in
society. When as a young adult he asked for the hand of his cousin Umm Hani, the
latter adamantly refused as the young Mohammed had no wealth to offer.
Yet young Muhammad was a standout in Mecca. He is said to have a rising stature,
beautiful tanned skin and a full head of black hair. His body would have been
conspicuously muscled, and he apparently had a strong, broad chest. His piercing
black eyes and full beard made him even more attractive. But especially his character
made him famous throughout the city. He was a calm and compassionate young man.

7
He was so honest that everyone in town referred to him by the name 'Al Amin', which
means 'The Trustworthy'.
When Mohammed was 25, everyone had heard of his honesty and trustworthiness.
Khadija, a wealthy widow who, despite all the patriarchal obstacles, had managed to
run a thriving business of her own, wanted to get to know the man of that reputation.
She offered to lead one of her trading caravans. When the caravan returned, the profit
was twice as high as expected. Khadija was so impressed with her new employee that
she immediately proposed to him.
The poor orphan had now become the husband of a wealthy merchant. His own status
in the Meccan community also increased enormously because of this. He was no
longer a poor bum, but now belonged to the Meccan middle class himself. He was
finally able to get a piece of the legendary wealth that flowed to the city of the Ka'ba
year after year. Although he enjoyed that new status, he still had problems with it. It
was difficult for him to live as a broker between the poor and the crooks. He was
known for being generous and honest, but now belonged to the elite himself.
All of this must have been very confusing to Mohammed. He regularly gave away
some of his wealth to the less fortunate, yet felt complicit in the economic system in
Mecca that produced wealth for him but poverty and misery for others. More and
more he withdrew for longer periods in the desert or in the mountains to meditate. In
this way he hoped to get out of hand and find a solution to the contradiction between
his ideals and his lifestyle.

8
Read, for God's sake

When Muhammad retired to the cave of Hira during the month of Ramadan (August)
in AD 610, something happened that would change his entire life and ultimately affect
all of world history.
During one of his many retreats, he was in deep meditation when he saw in vision an
angel commanding him to "Read!" Mohammed did not know what was happening and
asked, "What am I to read?" The angel took Muhammad in a choking grip and again
ordered “Read!”. Again Mohammed did not know what to read. "I can't read, how do
you want me to read?" The angel urged a third time "Read!" and showed a cloth with a
text embroidered on it:
Read, in the name of your Rab
who created you,
who created humanity
from a blood clot

Read, and your Rab is the Most Noble,

who taught with the pen,
taught the people what they did not know.

(Quran 96: 1-5)

These were the first revealed verses of the Holy Quran, the book that would be passed
on verse by verse to Muhammad for the next 23 years. The angel in the vision was the
Archangel Gabriel, sent by God to pass the Quran on to mankind. Mohammed read
what the man told him and then fled the cave in panic. He didn't know what had
happened to him and thought he might have gone mad. As fast as he could he ran to
his beloved Khadija, who reassured him. "God wouldn't let you go crazy," she said.
"He knows you are a generous man with a kind character." She suggested seeking
advice from her cousin Waraka who was a Christian. He was now well acquainted
with the Holy books and immediately understood what Muhammad had experienced
exactly. “He is a prophet to this people.He said. "Tell him to take courage."

9
However, the Prophet himself remained fearful and confused. He didn't know what
God wanted him to do or what it meant to be called to prophethood.
After a while more verses were revealed. It became clear to the Prophet that he had to
call those around him to convert to the one God, the Merciful and Merciful creator of
the heavens and the earth. He also had to urge them to help the weak in society, to
support the beggars and the orphans, and to stop living for wealth, power and property.
Woe to the slanderer and the gossiper
who accumulates wealth
and counts it over and over again.
Who thinks that wealth
will bring eternal life.

No, he's thrown into the uproar.

And what is that uproar?

God has lit a blazing fire
that penetrates to the hearts.

(Quran 104 1-7)

The Prophet Muhammad first proclaimed his message to the people around him. The
first to believe him were his wife Khadija, his teenage nephew Ali who lived with him
and his freed slave Zaïd. A woman, a teenager and a slave became the first followers
of the Prophet of Islam. This was typical of this religion, which was above all a
religion of the outcast and oppressed. The message that the Prophet proclaimed was
therefore a call for justice and more humanity. Islam was from the beginning a religion
that stood up against oppression.
Not long after, Muhammad's best friend, Abu Bakr, also converted to the new religion.
He was a wealthy and respected merchant, one of the most influential people among
the Quraishites. From the moment he became a Muslim, he spent all his wealth on
giving alms and ransoming slaves. Through him, Muhammad's message of conversion
and social justice was spread throughout the city. Abu Bakr was followed by many
other young men from Mecca's most influential clans. Muhammad's movement
became a revolutionary mix of oppressed poor and disaffected ruling class youth.
Many of them were women who risked their lives by breaking with the traditions and
religion of their fathers, husbands or brothers.

10
Anyone who became a Muslim took a leap of faith. To follow the Prophet was to
break with the clan that provided protection, with the traditions and rules of that clan,
and with the gods who were expected to help the clan in everything. It meant breaking
with the polytheism and living according to the shahada, the creed of Islam: "La ilaha
ila Allah wa Muhammad urasul illah." "There is no god but God and Muhammad is
the messenger of God." This creed was an outright attack on the commercial
polytheism that was the foundation of the Qurayshite wealth. Becoming a Muslim was
an open act of resistance against that ruling class. In addition, the call for social justice
was directed directly against the rule of that elite. The call to free slaves, to widows,To
help orphans and beggars and to treat all people equally was a clear indictment of the
wealth and decadence of the wealthy Quraishites in Mecca.

11
Persecution and oppression

It goes without saying that the Qurayshites did not like to see this resistance coming.
As long as the group of Muslims around God's Messenger did not grow too large, the
Qurayshites did little to stop them. They preferred to keep silent about this new
religion and hoped that everything would blow over. As more and more people
converted to Islam, including many slaves and other work people, the Meccan rulers
began to see that this evolution posed a threat to their dominance. Thus began the
campaign of the Quraishites to silence the Muslims, and in the first place God's
Messenger Muhammad.
The Prophet himself was still under the protection of his influential uncle Abu Talib.
This prevented the Quraishites from hitting him too badly. They insulted him,
disrupted his sermons and prayers by making noise, trying to ridicule his message, and
throwing animal viscera at him. However, many other Muslims were unprotected and
thus easy prey for those very first Islamophobes of the Meccan ruling class. It was not
long before the first Muslims were captured and tortured. Slaves who converted to the
religion of God's Messenger were punished in the most cruel way by their owners. At
one point when Abu Bakr was walking through the city, he saw the African slave Bilal
being tortured by his master for refusing to worship the gods of that master.He lay in
the hot desert sand with a heavy stone on his chest so he couldn't escape. No doubt he
would have died had Abu Bakr not ransomed him. Later in Medina, the black African
Bilal would become one of the most revered Muslims, the first muezin of the
Prophet's mosque.
The oppression of the Muslims was getting worse. Since the Quraishites could not
stop the movement, they became more and more bold. It did not take long for the first
Muslims to pay for this persecution with their lives. Sumayya bint Khayyat was the
first martyr to give her life for Islam. She was the mother of one of the first converts
and was killed for repeating that there was no god but God. Abu Jahl, one of the most
cruel of the Quraishites, pierced her with his spear and wounded her so that she died
on the spot. Later, her husband and son were also killed by the Quraishites. The
situation had become so bad that most of the Muslims' lives were no longer safe in the
city of the Quraishites.

12
Muhammad was so shocked by the brutal treatment of the Muslims that he sought a
way to protect them from the cruelty of the Qurayishites. After much thought, he gave
a number of Muslims permission to flee from Mecca. He advised them to travel to
Christian Abyssinia and to seek refugee protection from Asjama Negus, the ruler of
the country. When the Quraishites heard about this, they themselves sent a delegation
to the Negus to shower him with gifts and ask him to return the refugees. After hearing
the messengers of the Quraishites, the monarch let the Muslims speak for themselves.
Jafar ibn Abu Talib got up and addressed the Negus: “O King of the Abyssinians. We
lived in ignorance and in the deepest barbarism. We worshiped idols and committed
unchastity and adultery. We only knew the law of the fittest. Then God raised up a
man in our midst who forbade us to worship idols any longer. He told us to be honest
and merciful. He urged us to defend the rights of the weak and to stay away from bad
habits and evil. For this reason, the rulers of Mecca have begun to oppress us. They
insulted, tortured and murdered us until there was no more security for us in the city.
That is why we have come to your country and ask for your protection.The Negus
wanted to hear what the revelation of that Muhammad was and Djafar recited the
beginning of Surah Myriam, in which the birth of the prophets John (the Baptist) and
Jesus (the Christ) is told. The Abyssinian king, like his bishops, was moved to tears
upon hearing these words and spoke to the refugees: “These words and the words
revealed to Jesus are like rays of light emanating from the same source. There is only
a very fine line between your religion and mine. ” Then he turned to the
representatives of the Quraishites, saying, “I cannot hand these refugees over to you.
They are free to reside in my country and practice their religion as they wish.
”recounting the birth of the prophets John (the Baptist) and Jesus (the Christ). The
Abyssinian king, like his bishops, was moved to tears upon hearing these words and
spoke to the refugees: “These words and the words revealed to Jesus are like rays of
light emanating from the same source. There is only a very fine line between your
religion and mine. ” Then he turned to the representatives of the Quraishites, saying,
“I cannot hand these refugees over to you. They are free to reside in my country and
practice their religion as they wish. ”recounting the birth of the prophets John (the
Baptist) and Jesus (the Christ). The Abyssinian king, like his bishops, was moved to
tears upon hearing these words and spoke to the refugees: “These words and the words
revealed to Jesus are like rays of light emanating from the same source. There is only
a very fine line between your religion and mine. ” Then he turned to the
representatives of the Quraishites, saying, “I cannot hand these refugees over to you.
They are free to reside in my country and practice their religion as they wish. ”“These
words and the words revealed to Jesus are like rays of light coming from the same

13
source. There is only a very fine line between your religion and mine. ” Then he
turned to the representatives of the Quraishites, saying, “I cannot hand these refugees
over to you. They are free to reside in my country and practice their religion here as
they wish. ”“These words and the words revealed to Jesus are like rays of light
coming from the same source. There is only a very fine line between your religion and
mine. ” Then he turned to the representatives of the Quraishites, saying, “I cannot
hand these refugees over to you. They are free to reside in my country and practice
their religion as they wish. ”
The protection of the Negus was a thorn in the side of the Quraishites. Out of anger
and frustration, they intensified the oppression of the Muslims in Mecca. Still, the
movement continued to grow. More and more Meccans joined God's Messenger. The
Qurayshis noticed that their campaign of hatred against Islam was not having the
desired result and decided to adopt a new tactic. A general economic boycott was
declared against the Prophet's clan, the Banu Hashim. No one in Mecca was allowed
to trade with members of that clan. Even water and food could no longer be sold. The
boycott had devastating consequences for the Muslims. Most of them lived directly or
indirectly from trade.
Abu Talib, the Prophet's uncle and the sheik of the Banu Hashim, decided to withdraw
with the whole clan to a valley on the outskirts of the city. They would stay there for
more than a year, barred from any contact with the other Meccans. It was a time of
dire misery, the hunger was so bad that one had to eat dry leaves from the trees to stay
alive. Little children everywhere were crying because of hunger pangs. But the
Muslims patiently endured the boycott and waited for God's Help to come.
Eventually, resistance to the inhuman treatment of the Banu Hashim also grew among
the Quraishites. Several prominent figures from Mecca had family ties to that clan and
openly rebelled against the strangling boycott. After more than a year, it was finally
decided to give up and allow trade with the Banu Hashim again. The famine and
misery were over, the clan of God's Messenger was able to participate normally again
in public life in Mecca.
But for Mohammed, the torment was not over yet. The hardships of the famine had so
exhausted his uncle Abu Talib that he died not long after the boycott ended. Abu
Lahab, another uncle of Muhammad, became the new sheik of the Banu Hashim. He
deeply disliked his cousin and Islam. God's messenger had lost his influential
protector and was therefore outlawed by the Quraishites. Not long after that, Khadija,
his wife, also died. In one fell swoop the Prophet lost his protector and his emotional

14
support. This year, the tenth year after the first revelation, is therefore not called the
year of sorrow for nothing.
With the Prophet no longer under protection, the Qurayshites could strike him without
fear of reprisals. Muhammad was openly threatened from now on. Several Quraishites
plotted murder against his person. It was clear that his life in Mecca was in danger
from now on. He had to start looking for a new place to stay where he would be safe
from the threats from the Meccan Islamophobes.
Mohammed traveled with his former slave Zaid to Ta'if, a city sixty kilometers from
Mecca, and tried to invite the people there to Islam. However, the rulers of that city
did not want to offend the Meccan Quraishites and chose to ignore the message and
drive the Prophet out of the city. God's Messenger stayed in that city for ten days, but
the inhabitants continued to insult him and threw stones at him. Finally he returned to
Mecca.
One night Mohammed had a vision in which the archangel Gabriel took him on a
magic horse to the temple in Jerusalem. From there they both ascended to heaven.
There they met several past prophets including Adam, John, Jesus and Moses and
Abraham. They all affirmed their belief in God's unity and in the mission of God's
Messenger Mohammed. He was also brought near to the one God. God told him to
direct his followers to pray 50 times a day. When Mohammed came back to Moses, he
said that this was too much and that the believers would never insist on offering fifty
prayers a day. Muhammad went back to the Most High and begged him to ordain
fewer prayers per day. God asked first forty, then thirty, then twenty and ten
prayers.After all, God asked five prayers daily. God said "I have enjoined My
ordinances and lightened the burden of my servants." From that day and up to the
present day, all believing Muslims, anywhere in the world, pray five times a day the
Islamic prayer, the salat, as presented by Muhammad himself.
This night's journey was one of the last significant events during God's Messenger's
sojourn in Mecca. Not long after, he was to be invited by the people of Yathrib, an
oasis town north of Mecca, to act as a judge in a dispute between the Banu 'Aus clan
and the Banu Khazraj. The emigration of the Prophet to that city, which would later
bear the name Medinat ul Nabi (city of the Prophet), was such an important event that
it marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar.

15
The Hijra, migration in the name of God

In AD 622, the first year of the Islamic calendar, a number of people from the oasis
city of Yathrib came to Mecca. They were looking for Al Amin, Mohammed, God's
Messenger. They had heard that the Prophet was a very reliable and honest man and
they hoped that he would go with them to their city. Yathrib could not really be called
a city at that time. It was little more than a collection of villages around an oasis. The
population consisted mainly of farmers and a few traders.
For years, the community of Yathrib has been torn apart by a bloody feud between two
of the richest clans, the Banu 'Aus and the Banu Khazraj. To finally end the hostilities,
a hakam, impartial judge was sought who could resolve the dispute. The envoys in
Mecca hoped that the Prophet would take up this task. When they found God's
Messenger, they took a solemn oath of allegiance and promised that the Muslims
would be safe in their oasis town.
This marked a turning point in the development of Islam. The promised protection and
freedom to worship God made Yathrib an enticing destination. The Prophet called on
the Muslims to emigrate and his community gradually moved to their new home. This
emigration was called 'Hijra', the migrants 'Muhajirun'. In Yathrib they were received
very friendly and hospitable by people from the local population who were called
'ansaar' (helpers). The ansaar's hospitality knew no bounds.
When almost all Muslims had left the city of Mecca, it was also time for Mohammed
to leave. However, he knew that the Qurayshites would not just let him go. In
addition, he had learned that the leaders of the ruling clans had gathered in Mecca and
worked out a plan to kill him at night. Together with Abu Bakr, his best friend, he left
his house through a window at the back and fled the city unseen. Ali ibn Abu Talib,
Muhammad's cousin, lay down in his bed in his place, deceiving the murderers.
When almost all Muslims had left the city of Mecca, it was also time for Mohammed
to leave. However, he knew that the Qurayshites would not just let him go. In
addition, he had learned that the leaders of the ruling clans had gathered in Mecca and
worked out a plan to kill him at night. Together with Abu Bakr, his best friend, he left
his house through a window at the back and fled the city unseen. Ali ibn Abu Talib,
Muhammad's cousin, lay down in his bed in his place, deceiving the murderers.

16
When the Qurayshites realized that their attack had failed, God's Messenger and his
friend Abu Bakr had long since fled into the desert. The leaders of the Qurayshites
now offered a great reward of up to a hundred camels for those who would succeed in
killing or capturing Muhammad. Dozens of men, alone or in a group, went in search
of the fled Prophet, but he and his friend Abu Bakr hid in a cave on Mount Thawr.
When some of the bounty hunters approached the cave, Abu Bakr panicked and asked,
"What if they look in through a crack and see us here?" Mohammed calmed him
down, saying, “Hush! What do you think about two people, the third of which is God
Himself? ” When the bounty hunters got to the entrance of the cave, they saw that a
spider had woven a large web there.This made them think that no one had entered or
left the cave for a long time and did not bother to look inside. The work of that one
tiny spider saved God's Messenger and Abu Bakr. God had chosen one of His smallest
creatures to protect His Prophet, He did exactly what he later revealed to that Prophet:
And think of when the rejecters
conspired against you
to imprison you
or to murder you
or to drive you out.

They made a plan

and God made a plan.

And God is the best

of all planners.

(Quran 8:30)

After three days in the cave, Mohammed and Abu Bakr felt it was safe enough to
continue the journey. When someone on the way asked Abu Bakr who his traveling
companion was, he replied, "This man shows me the way." The questioner then
thought that Muhammad was a guide guiding Abu Bakr through the desert, but Abu
Bakr actually meant that he was a guide in the way of the righteous.
When Suraqah Ibn Malik, one of the bounty hunters, noticed them, he made his horse
run faster, but it stumbled and he fell off. When he was back in the saddle, he spurred
the animal to a high speed again, but it stumbled again and then again. Suraqah began
to understand that the Prophet was under the Highest protection and he repented. He
urged his mount to high speed one last time, this time no longer to capture the Prophet,

17
but to ask for forgiveness. Islam's sworn enemy had himself become a believer. After
receiving forgiveness and blessing from the Prophet, he returned to Mecca. In the city
he told no one where to find God's Messenger and his friend.
Not long before arriving in Yathrib, the Prophet and Abu Bakr encountered a caravan
led by Az Zubair, a cousin of the late Khadija. The two travelers were greeted
exuberantly by Az Zubair and each received a shining white robe. In those robes they
now appeared on the horizon of Yathrib. The joy of the waiting Muslims was
exuberant. God's Messenger had arrived in his new home.
Ten days after their departure from Mecca, the Prophet and Abu Bakr arrived in
Yathrib. They were met by dozens of Muslims, Muhajirun and Ansaar. Some had
climbed the tallest date palms that lined the outskirts of the city. In this way they
hoped to be the first to get a glimpse of God's Messenger. When the two men became
visible on the horizon, shouts of joy were heard everywhere. "Allahu Akbar!", "God is
Greater!". The children and the women sang a welcome song, which is still sung
today. Muhammad, the Messenger of God, had arrived in the city that would be his
new home from that day forward.

18
The City of the Prophet

Yathrib was not really a city in the early seventh century. Rather, it was a collection of
villages and hamlets set around an oasis. Different tribes lived there, each in its own
neighborhood. The richer tribes lived in the more fertile areas. These had been the first
to arrive at the oasis years ago and had seized the better tracts of land. They had
started a thriving date trade and had become relatively wealthy in that way. The most
important of them were the Jewish tribes of Banu Qurayza, Banu Nadir and Banu
Qainuqa. The region where these wealthier tribes lived was called 'the high city'.
Later, other tribes, both Jews and Arab nomads, arrived at the oasis and settled there.
However, they could no longer settle on the most fertile parts, and then settled in the
'low city', the poorer part of the oasis. As in Mecca, this situation eventually developed
into a distinct class society. Most of the economic sectors were clearly in the hands of
the wealthy of the high city. The poorer population was forced to work for the richer.
For example, the date trade fell almost entirely into the hands of the Banu Nadir.
Poorer farmers who produced dates themselves had no choice but to adapt to the
monopoly that tribe had acquired. The Banu Nadir set the prices, bought and sold the
dates and could even collect taxes from the poorer farmers. The only marketplace in
the region was owned by the Banu Qaynuqa. They rented the permanent sites for the
merchants, they lent money at high interest and collected taxes on all transactions. The
wealthier clans had even managed to control the water supply and make huge profits
from it. Thus Yathrib became a prosperous region where agriculture and trade could
flourish, but at the same time a region where a large part of the population was
exploited by a handful of wealthy clans.
In the early seventh century, the oasis of Yathrib was shaken by a bloody conflict that
had dragged on for years. Two clans, the Banu 'Aus and the Banu Khazraj, had entered
a spiral of blood feuds and dragged the remaining clans with them. This conflict, the
original cause of which was still unknown to anyone, paralyzed economic and social
life in the region. Every tribe and clan in the oasis city joined either party. The bloody
feud stunted agricultural production and made trade practically impossible.
Since every clan from Yathrib had become involved, no one could mediate anymore.
Around the year 620, several prominent figures from the city therefore started looking

19
for a hakam, a neutral referee from outside the community. They were looking for
someone who could judge honestly and impartially, someone who was completely
trustworthy. When they heard about a man from Mecca who had been called by the
locals for years by the nickname 'Al Amin', they wanted to get to know him. When it
turned out that that man, God's Messenger, was indeed worthy of his call sign, he was
asked if he wanted to come to Yathrib to adjudicate there as hakam between the two
warring factions.
The new hakam had secretly fled his hometown and had to make an arduous journey
across the desert to arrive in his new hometown. He had escaped the persecution of the
Quraishites and endured the hardships of the long journey. In that new hometown,
however, no one knew how he had fared. Had God's messenger survived the dangers
of the desert? Would he arrive in Yathrib alive and well? Dozens of people were
waiting for him on the outskirts of the oasis town. The most limber of them had
climbed one of the dozens of palm trees that lined the edge of the city. In the
scorching sun they waited impatiently for the coming of the Prophet. Among these
waiting were many Muslims who had recently fled Mecca themselves.Muslims who
had left behind not only the oppression of the polytheistic Quraishites, but also all
their property, their status, their security. Many of them had even left their families in
Mecca. These Muslims were called the 'muhadjirun', the migrants. They were received
in Yathrib by a handful of families who had already converted to Islam by then. These
hospitable residents of the oasis city were called the 'ansaar', the helpers.the
helpers.the helpers.
At one point, on the afternoon of the 13th of September of AD 622, while everyone
was trying to find shelter from the scorching sun in the shade of a palm tree, one of the
dozen waiting shouted that a shadow was visible on the horizon. It was not long
before everyone in the distance saw the figure of two men approaching. After days of
tension and uncertainty, now came the release. Dozens of throats shouted for joy. The
women and children under the muhadjirun and the ansaar sang a song of welcome to
God's Messenger.
When the Prophet finally arrived in the oasis city, several people of the ansaar wanted
to offer him a place to live. However, Mohammed was well aware that the situation
between the various clans in Yathrib was extremely tense. He realized that any choice
he made would immediately upset a number of people against him. He therefore
decided not to make a choice himself. He let his camel walk through Yathrib and
waited patiently for it to stop somewhere, then he would live there. The camel stopped
in front of a piece of land in the area of the Banu Najjar, a tribe related to the Prophet.

20
The Muslims immediately began to prepare the site and built a home for God's
Messenger and his family. The first mosque of Islam was also built on the same
site.Yathrib had become Muhammad's new home city. It was no longer an
insignificant collection of oasis villages, it had become Al Medinat an Nabi, the city of
the Prophet or Medina for short.
God's messenger took his role as Hakam seriously. He started his career in Medina by
drawing up a treaty between all the tribes who lived there. This treaty, later called the
Constitution of Medina, was a revolutionary document. In a society that was
thoroughly tribalist, he introduced a totally new concept: the Ummah, the community.
The document also turned the old tribal law of retaliation upside down by stating that
every criminal was personally responsible for his actions. No one could be punished
for the crimes of another.
The treaty stated, among other things, that the Muslims and the Jews of Medina
formed one community together, although they differed ethnically and religiously
from each other. The treaty provided mutual protection between all the tribes of
Medina and urged these tribes to bury their mutual conflicts. The Muslims were called
upon to provide the non-Muslim tribes with military protection against attackers, in
return the non-Muslims paid part of the cost of that protection.
Medina's constitution stated that the valley around Yathrib was sacred ground from
then on. That statement went against the interests of the Quraishites in Mecca. Indeed,
their economic, social and political dominance depended directly on the fact that
Mecca was the only holy city in the Hijaz. With this treaty, God's Messenger made it
clear that he continued unabated from Medina his opposition to the Meccan ruling
class. The Meccans had not lost their nuisance, on the contrary, from the new holy city
the Islamic movement could develop even better. In Medina, the Muslims were
relatively safe and free to live their religion in whatever way they chose.
The longer God's Messenger was in Madinah, the more his influence increased. Much
more than just a hakam, he was the political leader of a whole new tribe of Muslims.
He determined several new laws for that new tribe. These laws guaranteed for the first
time in the history of the Arabian peninsula the rights for those people who until then
were always oppressed: the women, the beggars, the orphans and widows, the
slaves ... Through the laws of Islam, a new form of government: the Islamic republic.
Before Islam, women were worth nothing more than cattle, in the Islamic state of
Medina they were given the right to own property. Men were only allowed to marry a
woman who had given her consent. The dowry was not paid to the woman's father or
brothers, but to the woman herself. She continued to own it, even though it later came

21
to a divorce. Incidentally, the woman's property was her own, while her husband had
to use his property to support the whole family. The Islamic State also gave women
the right to inheritance and recognized them as witnesses in court cases. Women were
allowed to independently conduct transactions and do business.
The rights of orphans and widows were also guaranteed in the Islamic state. They
received a guaranteed income that allowed them to escape poverty and begging. This
income was paid from a special tax, the zakat. This zakat, the word literally meaning
"purification," had to be paid for by the rich. This made Medina the first welfare state
in world history. To make it clear that zakat, the redistribution of wealth, was very
important, God's Messenger said it was one of the five pillars of religion. He even said
that the prayer is not accepted from someone who does not pay zakat.
However, the reforms of Islam went further than that. Mohammed called on the
wealthier Muslims to purchase water sources and then make them accessible to the
public. With this he went directly against the interests of the wealthier clans in
Medina. They had a monopoly on the water resources and took advantage of it to reap
high profiteering. God's Messenger also established his own marketplace in Medina.
No one had to pay rent for a pitch, no taxes were levied on transactions and interest-
free loans were given to those who did not have sufficient means of their own.
So the new Islamic laws that led to the creation of the Islamic state of Medina were
not only liberating for the oppressed. They were also a clear attack on the interests of
the ruling class, both in Medina itself and in Mecca. The growing community of
Muslims was thus transformed into a revolutionary people capable of defying the
oppression and exploitation of the rulers. The word 'Islam' comes from the root slm,
which means 'peace' and 'obedience'. A Muslim (from mslm, one who is in Islam)
obeys none other than God and does not recognize any masters other than his Creator.
Through this obedience he finds peace and tranquility in his environment, but also in
his soul.But obedience to God in many cases also means a form of resistance to the
rule of the secular rulers, whose rule so often rests on exploitation and oppression.
As the revolutionary Islamic state develops, opposition from those ruling classes
grows, both in Mecca and Medina. The Quraishites in Mecca were outraged that the
Prophet and his followers had been able to escape their oppression. In addition, they
experienced considerable inconvenience because Medina was a new holy city, so
several trading caravans made a detour. The fact that more and more slaves and other
workers converted to Islam and fled to Medina was also a major problem for them.
The ruling class in Medina, especially the three Jewish clans Banu Qainuqa, Banu
Nadir and Banu Quraiza, were directly harmed in their interests. They saw their

22
income from their monopoly positions decline and the Islamic state was a threat to
their wealth.
In the early years after the Hijra, tension increased between the Muslims and the
ruling class in both cities. The Qurayshites confiscated the goods left behind in Mecca
from the Muslims and sold them to foreign merchants. The Muslims who for some
reason could not have left Mecca were subjected to the most brutal torture. At one
point, the Meccan rulers even declared a new boycott. Commercial caravans were no
longer allowed to visit Medina, the inhabitants were starved that way. After all, the
tension ran so high that a military confrontation was almost unavoidable.

23
The Constitution of Medina

This is a document from Muhammad the Prophet.

It regulates relations between the Believers, that is, Muslims of Quraish and Yathrib,
and those who followed and worked hard. They are one people, the Ummah. The Bani
Saida, the Bani Harith, the Bani Djusham and the Bani Nadjar are also under the
administration according to the above rules. The Bani Amr, Bani Awf, Bani Al-Nabiet
and Bani Al-Aws will be governed in the same way.
Everyone will get their share according to the party they belong to. Individuals must
take advantage of or atone for the good or bad deeds of the group to which they
belong. Without such a rule, the group bond and discipline cannot be maintained.
A man will not be held responsible for wrongdoing by his ally.
-oOo-
Anyone who is disadvantaged must be helped.
Anyone who acts loyally or differently does so for his own good or disadvantage.
Believers will not fail to ransom their captives, they will pay blood money for them. Its
payment will be a common responsibility of the Ummah and not of the family of the
prisoners alone.
In case of war, all parties will ransom their prisoners in accordance with the customs
of the Believers and not in accordance with pre-Islamic ideas.
The freed slaves will receive the same status as their former master's clan. This status
serves for fair trade and full justice as a right, and equal responsibility for military
service.
-oOo-
Quraish and their allies will not be protected.
No disbeliever will be allowed to protect the property of the Quraish. Possessions of
the enemy must be transferred to the State.
No disbeliever will intervene in favor of the Quraish.

24
Any unbeliever who kills a Believer without good reason will in turn be killed unless
the immediate family members receive satisfaction. All believers will be against such
a criminal. No Believer will be allowed to protect such a man.
-oOo-
Yathrib will be a Refuge for the people of this Treaty.
Protection in the Name of God will be customary. (Even) the weakest of the Believers
may offer protection and that will be binding on all Believers.
Believers are all friends.
A foreigner who has received protection will be treated as his host as long as he does
not harm or commit crimes. Those who have received protection but engage in anti-
state activities run the risk of being punished.
Loyalty protects against betrayal.
-oOo-
If one party to this Covenant is attacked by anyone, the other must come to his aid.
They must ask each other for advice and consult each other. Those who avoid
concertation do so because of a lack of sincerity and loyalty.
Peace and war terms and the associated conveniences or inconveniences must be
shared fairly and equally among all citizens. When a rider goes on an expedition, he
must take his Army companion with him. The Believers are better at showing
steadfastness and as a result receive guidance from God in this regard. Others must
also strive for the same standard of steadfastness.
The parties to this Convention are bound to assist each other in the event of an attack
on Yathrib. If they are called to make and keep peace, then they must do so. If such an
appeal is made to the Muslims it must be carried out, except when the Muslims are
already involved in waging war in the Way of God.
Loyalty protects against betrayal.
-oOo-
If any harm has been done against any person or party, that harm may be avenged.
Anyone who kills another without warning does what amounts to killing himself and
his own family, unless the killing was related to harm done to him.
-oOo-
If you disagree on anything, the matter will be referred to God and Muhammad.

25
 No one will go to war without Muhammad's permission.
In the event of any dispute or dispute that may turn into trouble, the matter should be
referred to God and Muhammad; the Prophet of God will accept everything in this
document. This benefits piety and goodness.
This document will not protect anyone who is unjust or commits a crime. Whether a
person goes to battle or stays at home, he will be safe unless he has committed a
crime or is a sinner.
God approves of this Document. God is the Protector of the good people and of those
who fear God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God.

(The original of this treaty has never been found. This is a reconstruction based on
historical sources.)

26
The revolution defends itself

Tension was cutting in the city of the Prophet. Everyone had heard the news that the
Qurayshites were selling the seized goods from the Muslims and organizing new
caravan expeditions with the profit. Meanwhile, the inhabitants of Medina were cut off
from all supplies by a boycott of the same Quraishites. Many Muslims wanted to
retaliate against the Qurayshites and prepare a military retaliation. However, God's
Messenger forbade this. Muslims were to be people of peace above all.
A year or two after the Hijrah, the Qurayshites went one step further. Kurz Ibn Jabir
Frihi, one of the leaders from Mecca, raided a piece of land near Medina and wanted
to rob a herd of cattle owned by the Muslims. He was chased away but managed to
escape. Years later, Kurz Ibn Jabir Frihi converted to Islam and was himself killed by
Quraishites.
It became increasingly clear that the Muslims had to organize themselves to defend
their way of life and their property. The Prophet therefore sent envoys to the different
peoples in the region of Medina with the proposal to organize the defense of their land
together. Several chieftains entered into a treaty with the Muslims in which they
declared that they would not attack each other and that they would jointly defend the
region.
In order to prevent the sale of the property of the Muslims of Mecca, God's Messenger
Abdullah sent Ibn Jahaz to the region between Mecca and Ta'if. He was instructed to
observe and report on the troop movements of the Quraishites from there. A caravan
from Syria happened to pass nearby and Abdullah decided to attack it. This attack took
a lot of loot and killed one of the Quraishites and wounded a few others. Back in
Medina, he reported to the Prophet. He was very dissatisfied with what he heard. The
spoils of war were denied and Abdullah received a fierce scolding: “You did not keep
your order and you carried out an attack that you were not ordered. In addition, you
fought during the holy months. ”
This attack was the last straw for the Qurayshites. 'Amr Ibn Hadrami, the man who
was killed in the attack, was an ally of Harb Ibn Umaya, one of the main leaders of
Mecca. It called for a blood feud between the Qurayshites and the Muslims, a bloody
war that could drag on for generations. The lives of the Muslims who had stayed

27
behind in Mecca were now no longer safe at all. The Qurayshites decided to sell all
remaining belongings of the Muslims and to intensify the boycott.
In Medina people were well aware of what was going on. Hamza, the Prophet's uncle,
and his closest friends Abu Bakr and Umar tried to convince God's Messenger to
conduct a military expedition against the Meccans and thus lift the threat once and for
all. The Prophet himself hesitated. He knew that a military expedition would cost
many lives, both for the Muslims and for their adversaries. The Muslims in Madinah
grew impatient, but the Prophet urged them to be patient.
In the spring of the second year after the Hijrah, 624 C.E., it became known that the
Qurayshites were organizing a large caravan to sell the belongings of the Muslims in
Syria. Outrage among Muslims reached a height. This caravan was led by Abu Sufyan
Ibn Harb, the sworn enemy of the Muslims. Urwa Ibn Zubair, a spy for the Muslims in
the enemy camp, reported that that caravan was protected by some seventy warriors.
The inhabitants of Medina wanted nothing more than to raid this caravan to regain
their own belongings. However, the Prophet remained silent and rejected any military
preparation.
Muhammad's attitude did not change until he received a revelation explaining the
circumstances under which violence was allowed:
Permission (to fight) has been given
to those who are fought against
because they are treated unjustly.

And God is certainly able to make them win.

Those who were expelled from their homes

for no right or reason
just because they said,
"God is our Lord."

And if God hadn’t repelled some people by others,

certainly there would have been
pulled down cloisters and churches
and synagogues and mosques
in which God's name is often remembered.

28
 And surely God will help those who help His cause. Surely God
is Strong, Mighty.

(22: 39-40)

The Battle of Badr

After this revelation had come to him, God's Messenger ordered the Muslims to
prepare for a military expedition. Immediately a whole part of the city was preparing
for battle. An army of 313 men, not only Muslims but also several of their allies,
reported ready to march and raid the caravan. Since the army had only two horses and
seventy camels available, most of the warriors traveled the long way on foot, or in
groups of three on a camel.
Most of the participants in the campaign did not expect a hard fight. They thought that
their supremacy would cause Abu Sufyan to see that resistance was useless. Most
Muslims were convinced that they would overpower the caravan without a fight and
thus get their belongings back in their hands. They did not know then that Abu Sufyan
had been informed of the plan by spies. He had sent a messenger to Mecca asking to
raise an army and come to meet him. The Quraishites immediately assembled a
heavily armed army of about 1,000 men. Amr ibn Hisjam, the Prophet's uncle and the
sheikh of the Quraishites, led the expedition.He was one of the fiercest and most
unyielding Islamophobes of his day and was revered by the Muslims with the mockery
of Abu Jahl (father of ignorance).
Meanwhile, the Muslim army, led by God's Messenger, advanced to the wells at Badr.
There they would camp and wait for Abu Sufyan's caravan. When Mohammed heard
about the Meccan army coming their way, he immediately convened a council of war.
First he addressed all the ansar in the army. He reminded them that they were not
obliged to join the fight as this battle was not directly related to the defense of the city.
It was a conflict between Meccans and the people of Medina had the right not to
interfere. Sa'd ibn 'Ubada replied, however, that their confidence was so great that they
would plunge into the sea with horse and all at the command of God's Messenger.
Then the strategy was discussed. Mohammed suggested drafting the army at the first
source they came across. One of the participating Muslims, Hubab ibn al-Muhdir,
asked him if that was a plan revealed by God or a decision of his own. When God's

29
Messenger told him that he had devised this plan himself, Hubab suggested something
else to him. According to him, they should move further to the source closest to the
army of the Quraishites. They could then defend the other sources and make supplies
to the Meccan army more difficult. Without feeling hurt in his honor after that
contradiction, God's Messenger ordered the carrying out of Hubab's plan.
The two armies remained facing each other for a time at Badr. The 313 bums on foot
on one side, the 1,000-strong, heavily armed forces of the Meccan elite on the other.
God Messenger still hoped that a violent confrontation could be avoided, but the
chances of a peaceful solution were diminishing.
On the second day of Ramadan (March 17), at midnight, the Qurayshites broke camp
and marched into the valley of Badr. Before they reached the Muslim army, a spy
came to report that the Prophet had only raised a few hundred men. However, he
warned that he believed there could be many casualties in a possible fight. For he felt
that the enemy's camels were charged with certain death. When a number of Meccans
were put off by this, Abu Jahl appealed to their sense of honor.
The Battle of Badr started like a traditional Arab battle. First three champions from
both camps emerged. When three Ansaar entered the battlefield for the Muslims,
protests came from the Qurayishites. They did not have a conflict with the ansaar from
Medina, but with the fled Muslims from Mecca. Then Ali, Hamza and Ubaydah came
in their place. The champions fought head-to-head. Hamza, the uncle of God's
Messenger, had quickly overpowered his opponent. However, Ubaydah was fatally
wounded in the fight.
Then the archers of both armies began to fire at each other. Two Muslims lost their
lives. It is not known how many Quraishites were affected. At one point, God's
Messenger threw a handful of pebbles at the opponents as a sign that the Muslim army
should attack.
Although many witness accounts of the battle exist, it is very difficult to discern the
historical facts from the legend. Some eyewitnesses speak of an army of angels that
they saw descending to help the Muslims. Others claim that the army from Medina
was assisted by sandstorms and other natural phenomena. In any case, it is certain that
the battle was won by the Muslims. Despite the enormous numerical superiority of the
opponents, they had achieved a clear victory.
Fourteen Muslims lost their lives at the Battle of Badr. The Quraishites had five times
as many dead in their ranks. In addition, so many Meccans were taken prisoner of war.
Although it was the custom in those days to kill or enslave prisoners of war, God's

30
Messenger instructed them to treat them well. If they see an example of good conduct
by a Muslim, even in captivity, they might be able to convert. When a freed slave
recognized his former owner among the prisoners of war, he wanted to kill him. The
Muslims then appointed a soldier to guard his life. Before the return to Madinah,
God's Messenger also ordered that the dead Quraishites be given a dignified burial. In
Mecca, however, the captured Muslims were all executed by the Qurayshites in
revenge for the defeat suffered.
After the battle, political relations in the Hijaz were clearly redrawn. The City of the
Prophet and its inhabitants had become a factor to be reckoned with. Several nomad
tribes from the area canceled their alliance with the city of Mecca and entered into a
treaty with Medina. Many converted to this religion of Mohammed. To them, the
victory over the Meccans' army was nothing but a miracle, proof that God was indeed
on the side of His Messenger and of the Muslims.
However, there were also a number of unsolved problems in the city of Medina. First
and foremost, it turned out that the Qurayshites had inside information. Someone in
Medina must have informed them of plans to attack Abu Sufyan. Much pointed out
that the perpetrators should be sought from tribes that had previously been the city's
economic and political elite. The revolutionary laws of Islam had greatly undermined
their position of power.
One of those tribes, the Jewish tribe of Banu Qainuqa, had already made several
attempts to undermine the power of the Muslims and to violate their honor. This tribe
used to have a monopoly position because they owned the only marketplace in
Medina. They had built up a great financial position of power through gold trade,
rents, taxes and loans with usury. When God's Messenger opened a new market where
no more high rents, interests or taxes were collected, the Banu Qainuqa had lost their
monopoly. In addition, the Banu Qainuqa traded intensively with the Quraishites. So
they had every interest in Muhammad's army being defeated by the Meccans.
When it was revealed that it was indeed the tribe of the Banu Qainuqa who had
informed the Quraishites, the Muslims marched to the high city where they laid siege
to that tribe's fortress. After two weeks they surrendered. Contrary to common law of
the time, the members of the tribe were not killed. However, they had violated the
Treaty of Medina and betrayed their official allies. However, God's Messenger
decided to let them live. However, they had to leave the city and find shelter
elsewhere.

31
The Battle of Uhud

At the Badr wells, the Muslims had won an important battle. However, the war against
the Meccan elite was not over yet. Enraged at the defeat and incited by the Arab blood
feud, the Qurayshites considered another attack. A year after the battle of Badr, Abu
Sufyan Ibn Harb raised a new army. This time he gathered 3,000 men who headed for
Medina.
The Muslim army that faced them had about 700 members. Although more than twice
as many Muslims took part in the battle now as the year before, the entire army
remained a poor affair. In the eyes of Abu Sufyan, the Muslims were still a gang of
bastards who rebelled against the authority of the Qurayshites, Badr had been a
mistake in history and it would now be rectified.
Not only Abu Sufyan and his army were confident. Most Muslims felt invincible at the
Battle of Badr. They were drunk with success and thought that this battle, too, would
be easily won. Many Muslims longed for victory and hoped that there would be spoils
of war they could divide. When the archers were ordered to stand on a hill and from
there defend the Muslim army, they were afraid that some of the booty would pass
them by that way. When the Muslim army appeared to be victorious again, the
gunmen left their designated place to get closer to the battlefield.
Khalid ibn Walid, the best general of his generation who would later become a Muslim
and nicknamed "the sword of Islam" by God's Messenger, was one of the three leaders
of the Qurayshites. He commanded the left flank of the army. When he noticed that
the archers had left their place, he took advantage of it. He led his army on the
defensive through this new breach and managed to create confusion.
Khalid ibn Walid's attack was a complete surprise. The Muslim troops were suddenly
attacked on two sides. In the uproar that ensued, the Qurayshites were able to get close
to the tent of God's Messenger. The battle had moved to the immediate vicinity of the
Prophet. The best warriors rushed to the rescue to protect God's Messenger. One of
those warring Muslims was a woman. Her name was Nusayah bint Khatab, she was
not a nurse or cook, but a soldier. "Wherever I looked," God's Messenger would later
say, "I saw her fighting to defend me."
No one knew exactly what happened at Muhammad's tent. How did the Qurayshites
suddenly get there? Who were there to defend him? Could God have forsaken them?
Was His Messenger still alive? It was not long before the news of Muhammad's death

32
spread to the Muslims. The upheaval and panic reached its height and the Qurayshites
were able to win.
Dozens of Muslims died at Uhud that day. Their bodies were mutilated by the
Meccans' wives. The most famous of his was Hamza, the Prophet's uncle and
protector. When the fight was over Hind, wife of Abu Sufyan, cut his dead body and
ate his liver.
Both the Muslims and the Qurayshites suffered heavy losses in this battle, but,
especially after Badr, this battle was a defeat for the Muslim army. The hubris and
longing for spoils of war had made them easy prey for a military genius like ibn
Walid. Yet the Qurayshites had failed to take Medina or dismantle the Muslim state
there. After a short negotiation with Umar ibn Al Khattab, Abu Sufyan decided to
withdraw his army.
This time, too, the Qurayshites appeared to have received significant help from
Medina. The Banu Qainuqa were not the only tribe to collaborate with the rulers of
Mecca. This time too the culprits had to be found in the High city. The Banu Nadir had
also suffered economic damage from the new laws in the city. They too had lost their
monopoly positions. Due to their date trade, they were also strongly associated with
the rulers of the Quraishites. Not surprisingly, it was found that they had not only
passed on important military information to the opponents, but also persuaded the
Muslim allies to withdraw just before the battle and even forged an assassination plot
against God's Messenger.
As a year before, the people of Medina moved back to the High City. This time to
besiege the fortress of the Banoe Nadir. When the Banu Qurayza, the third of the three
wealthy Jewish tribes who together ruled ancient Yathrib, refused to assist their Banu
Nadir allies, the latter surrendered to the Muslims. They made it a condition that they
wanted to be treated in the same way as the Banu Qainuqa a year before. So it came to
pass that the members of the tribe gathered their belongings and left Medina.

The Battle of the Trench

The battle of Uhud was followed by a bloody period of war between Medina and
Mecca, between the Muslims and the Qurayshites, between the oppressed and their
oppressors. It was a time of conspiracy, intrigue, murder and bloody violence on the
two sides. But it was also a time when the prestige of the Muslims grew enormously.
The rebels from Medina who dared to challenge the authority of the powerful and

33
wealthy Qurayshites could count on more and more sympathy the longer they
persisted in their resistance. More and more nomad tribes sided with God's Messenger.
The Quraishites noticed by everything that the balance of power shifted in the Hijaz.
Until a few years earlier, Mecca was the absolute religious and economic focal point
of the region, now the city had to share that status with Medina. The unconditional
alliances of a few years ago were suddenly all up for debate. Understanding that their
power was under grave threat, the rulers in Mecca decided to make a last-ditch effort
to crush the Islamic uprising in Medina.
Two years after the battle of Uhud, Abu Sufyan raised a new army. This time he
himself managed to gather more than five thousand soldiers: 4000 foot soldiers, 300
horsemen on horseback and a good thousand men on camels. The Banu Nadir, still out
for revenge, managed to add another 2,000 mercenaries. In total, the army of the
Qurayshites was nearly ten thousand strong this time.
When the people of Medina heard the news of that new Meccan army, they began to
prepare to face the adversary outside the city again. God's Messenger convened a new
council of war. After much discussion, it was decided that Salman al Farsi's plan was
the best. He had proposed digging a ditch around the city to prevent the adversary
from entering Medina.
Every inhabitant of Medina helped to get the ditch ready on time: Men, women,
children and the elderly. Even God's Messenger himself helped dig all the time. It took
six days for the work to be completed. Then the harvest was brought in early so that
there would be food in Medina during the siege. That way, the opponent was also
completely dependent on his own supplies.
When the army of the Qurayshites stood in front of the ditch, they did not know what
to do. It was clearly impossible to just jump over it. Even their horses didn't jump that
far. Climbing into the ditch and back out on the other side meant surrendering to the
opposing archers who could take the time to shoot at the climbing soldiers.
Abu Sufyan decided to stop there and starve the city. The Meccans camped at the ditch
and remained there for more than two weeks. There was no real fighting, the situation
was not what the leader of the Meccans had expected. When Muhammad also entered
into diplomatic talks with the allies of the Quraishites, threatening to blow up the
alliance, Abu Sufyan decided to withdraw his army. There had not even been any
significant fighting. His army of ten thousand men had been stopped by a well in the
ground. The humiliation couldn't be greater.

34
There was great joy inside the city. Except for a few skirmishes at the ditch, no force
had been used. The Muslims still remembered Uhud's trauma and realized all too well
that it was better to avoid violence. Thanks to Salman al Farsi's ingenious plan, they
had succeeded.
However, there had been heavy fighting inside the city. The Banu Qurayza, the last of
the three rich Jewish tribes, had openly sided with Abu Sufyan and attacked the
Muslims inside the city. This was a serious violation of the Treaty of Medina and a
treason against their own city. God's Messenger realized that his followers would no
longer accept it if he also released them, like their predecessors of the Banu Qainuqa
and the Banu Nadir. He decided that this was a matter before an impartial judge, a
traditional arabian hakam.
For that role of Hakam, Sa'd ibn Mu'adz, the Shaykh of the Banu 'Aws, was
designated. Since that tribe had had strong ties with the Banu Qurayza since time
immemorial, they were confident that they too would be allowed to leave the city with
impunity. But Ibn Mu'aadz did not respond as they had hoped. He had just been
wounded at home in bed for weeks at a time, felled by injuries sustained in the battle.
His decision was to apply the traditional punishment for treason. The men of the tribe
were to be killed, the women and children sold into slavery, and their property
expropriated. This punishment seems very cruel, certainly in our twenty-first century
eyes. However, we have to keep the whole situation in mind. The execution of the
men of the Banu Qurayza was an act of war.

The Huraybada Treaty

In the following year, the prestige of the Muslims continued to rise. The humiliation of
the Qurayshites at the ditch and the growing trade relations between various nomadic
tribes and the city of Medina led more and more Arabs to pledge allegiance to God's
Messenger. The Meccans' power was only a shadow of what it used to be.
About a year after the battle at the ditch, God's Messenger decided to return to Mecca.
He had the ability to muster an army of thousands of soldiers and take the city
militarily without much trouble. He could rally the majority of the nomads as allies
and raise an unseen army. But he decided to do it differently.
One day he told his companions that he had had a dream. In that dream he and his
followers entered safely into the city of Mecca to complete the Hajj, the pilgrimage to
the Kaaba. He announced that the Muslims would go on a pilgrimage together that

35
year and enter the city as pilgrims unarmed. The head of state of Medina, the main
political force in the Hedjaz at the time, who could command the largest army the
Arabs ever saw if he wanted, chose to face his opponent unarmed as a pilgrim.
When the time of Hajj arrived, more than a thousand Muslims gathered to go to the
holy city with their Prophet. When the pilgrims saw the city of the Kaaba in the
distance, they shouted loudly "Labik, ya rab, labaik!" (here I am, o lord, here I am).
The Meccans did not know what was happening to them. Their opponents, with whom
they were engaged in a bloody war, suddenly stood there like pilgrims unarmed in
front of the city gate.
The Qurayshites rushed out of the city to stop God's Messenger and his followers from
a great distance. They realized all too well how much guts it took to undertake this
hajj. They also realized that the Prophet could only afford this because the balance of
power in the Hijaz had changed drastically. They therefore decided to negotiate a
truce.
The Qurayshites' peace proposal was absurd. It went so against the interests of the
Muslims, however the winning side in the conflict, that no one could really take it
seriously. They demanded that the Muslims immediately withdraw and suspend all
military expeditions. If so, the Muslims would be allowed to make the hajj the
following year. The city of Mecca would then be evacuated for a few days so that the
Muslims could complete their pilgrimage in peace. Completely humiliating was the
fact that Muhammad was not allowed to sign the proposal as "God's Messenger", but
only as the leader of the Muslims.
Many Muslims were outraged. The treaty was a farce. The influence and prestige of
the Muslims grew day by day. Why should they accept such a humiliating treaty?
Umar ibn Khattab asked Abu Bakr, "Tell me, is he not God's Messenger?" "Yes,"
replied Abu Bakr. "And we? Are we not Muslims then? " "Certainly. We are
Muslims.” "And are they not idolaters then?" "Yes indeed." "Why then must we give
in to them, when that may harm our religion?" Abu Bakr had no answer to this other
than, "I testify that he is the Messenger of God."
Muhammad, however, knew why he wanted to accept this treaty, however humiliating
to the Muslims. He realized that every Muslim has a duty to pursue peace, no matter
how humiliating the conditions for it.
Fight them
until there is no more oppression
and religion belongs to God alone.

36
 But if they stop,
then do not seek retaliation,
except against the unrighteous.

(Quran 2: 193)

Above all, this treaty was the cause of a long-awaited peace. The Muslims in Medina
were finally able to continue their lives carefree. The threat from the Mecca army or
from sabotage and violence by the Qurayshite allies had disappeared.
In the year that followed, the rise of Islam seemed unstoppable. Everyone in the Hijaz
realized that the treaty of Huraybada, as humiliating as it seemed to the Muslims, was
a sign of the powerlessness of the Quraishites. People eagerly awaited what would
happen when God's Messenger made Hajj with his followers.
When God's messenger with his followers finally arrived back in Mecca, all the
residents were impressed. Here was these bumshoes now, those religious fanatics that
everyone was talking about. They were worthy pious people who took pride in
performing all the rites of the hajj in great detail. Those followers of Muhammad also
turned out to be friendly, peace-loving people. Muhammad's hajj had a strong effect
on the Meccans. For many of them, contempt and hatred gave way to admiration and
awe. The motivation to keep attacking those Muslims just kept diminishing.

The liberation of Mecca

A good year after this pilgrimage, a number of Qurayshite allies had used violence
against Muslims. The city of Medina considered this a violation of the Huraybada
treaty. The Muslims and their allies met at a court-martial. In the end it was decided to
return to Mecca. This time not as pilgrims, but with a well-equipped army.
In Mecca itself, however, the situation was completely different from a few years
earlier. Mohammed and his followers were no longer seen as bastards or bigots. More
and more Meccans even looked forward to a political renewal in their city. The
Quraishite clique led by Abu Sufyan became less and less trusting from the
population. The dignified and pious statesman they had seen during the Hajj was
increasingly seen as a valid alternative. The smell of revolution was also in the air in
Mecca.

37
When the Meccans saw the more than 10,000 soldiers of the Muslim army standing at
the gates of their city, a majority were ready to surrender without resistance. God's
Messenger was received with open arms in his hometown. The Mecca of the
Quraishites had surrendered to the Muslims.
After accepting the surrender, Mohammed did something that shocked all Arab
society. He decided to grant general amnesty to anyone who was his opponent during
the war. Although the old tribal laws gave him the right to now regard the Qurayshites
as slaves or even kill them, he refused. He proclaimed freedom for all inhabitants of
the city (prisoners of war, but also the slaves from Mecca). Only six men and four
women were executed for various war crimes. All others were allowed to go free,
provided they took an oath never to make war again against God's Messenger and his
followers. No one was forced to convert to Islam.
After this, God's Messenger and his followers went to the Kaaba. Together with his
nephew and son-in-law Ali ibn Abu Talib, he entered the building and carried out the
idols one by one. He smashed every idol at the door of the Kaaba. He washed the
various paintings of idols, saints and prophets with water from the Zamzam well.
However, when a painting of Jesus and his mother Mary was taken from the Kaaba, he
refused to wash it. He reverently put both hands on it and said, "Wipe out everything
except that which is under my hands." The last image extracted from the Kaaba was
that of the Syrian idol Hubal. God's Messenger raised his sword and cut the image to
pieces. Later the debris would be used to carry out construction work on the kaaba.
When the city of Mecca was liberated from the Qurayshite regime, the war between
Medina and Mecca was also over. The people of Medina had overcome and with them
the religion of God's Messenger. More and more people converted, until Islam
eventually became the dominant way of life in the region.
It must be said that not all converts had equally religious motives for embracing Islam.
Certainly some will have seen the hand of God in the rapid advance of the Muslims,
and a fine example in their exemplary lifestyle. But others chose more pragmatic
considerations. It was clear that Islam was on its way to dominate the Hijaz politically
as well. Joining that religion seemed to some to be a way of gaining power. Still others
may have converted in order to erase the memory of their past as Islamophobic.
Regardless, the surrender of Mecca was a turning point in their history for the
Muslims. Throughout the Hijaz, they could now live freely and pursue their ideal of
serving no one except their Creator. From a gang of rebellious bums, the Ummah, the
community of Muslims, had grown into a mature political and religious movement
that was now ready to effectively wield power.

38
The Farewell Pilgrimage

God's Messenger had almost completed his commission. He had abolished

commercial idolatry in Mecca, broken the power of the elite, and established a state in
which God's laws guaranteed justice. He had defeated the armies of the former elite in
military campaigns, but won the final victory by capturing the hearts of the Meccans.
He had brought light to a people living in barbaric ignorance.
However, he realized that as a Prophet he was still human, and therefore mortal. He
had become an old man and knew that the end of his life would not be long in coming
now. One day he said he knew he wouldn't live another year. He said that the angel
Gabriel asked him once every year during Ramadan to recite the whole of the Quran.
This year Gabriel had asked that twice. This was a sign to him that he would die this
year.
Before his death, he wanted to make the pilgrimage to the kaaba one more time. As a
few years before, everything was prepared to go to Mecca. This year there was no
more danger. The Muslims were able to return to the holy city in peace and perform
their religious duties there. Yet there was an excited atmosphere. Everyone realized
that this was going to be a special hajj. It would be God's Messenger's final
pilgrimage.
More than a hundred thousand Muslims accompanied the Prophet as he traveled to
Mecca. Together with him they shouted "Here I am, O God, Here I am!" as they
approached the city. Thousands of others joined them as they circled the sacred Kaaba
seven times, after which all that crowd went to Mina to perform the prescribed rituals
there too. Finally everyone went to the plain near Arafat. When all the Muslims were
gathered there, God's Messenger arose. As the prophets Moses and Jesus had done
centuries before, he climbed a mountain to speak to the crowd.
The Sermon on the Mount of Muhammad is considered by many to be the keystone of
his teachings. It is his religious and political testament, the best summary of Islam as
he had come to know it. It is a call for justice and compassion, a compelling plea
against all forms of injustice and oppression.
God's Messenger begins his speech dramatically. He announces that this is likely to be
his last public appearance:

39
 “All glory to God.
We praise Him, ask His forgiveness,
and turn to Him.
O People!
Listen to my words,
because I don't know if we'll ever meet again.
I don't know if I will ever be able to go on hajj again.
God says:
“O Humanity,
We created you from one man and one woman
and divided you into tribes
so that you might get to know each other. ”
Truly, in God's sight
is the most honorable of you
the one who has the most taqwa.
An Arab is no better than a non-Arab
and a non-Arab is no better than an Arab.
Likewise, a white person is no better than a black person
and a black no better than a white man,
unless out of piety.
All mankind is the progeny of Adam
and was made of clay. ”
He emphasized that in Islam there should be no distinction between people based on
origin. No one is more honorable than another except through "taqwa", piety. Islam
considers the life, honor and property of everyone to be sacred. These are inviolable
and must be protected by all Muslims.
Privileges were abolished along with all debts arising from interest. Bloodguilt was
also canceled. The first blood debt to be forgiven had ever been demanded by his own
tribe against the Banu Hudhayls, also the first interest debt to be reversed was his own
tribe. In this way he made it clear that the measure was not only for his personal
interest or that of his own tribe.
God's Messenger also made it clear that all the privileges enjoyed by men in the time
of jahilliya were now a thing of the past. Women also had rights, as persons and as
wives.

40
 “ You have rights
against your wives
and your wives have rights
against you.
They should not commit improper acts,
and if they do
then you may keep them out of bed
and punish them, but not harshly.
If they don't, take care of them
and give them clothing and food.
Treat the women kindly.
They are your partners and can
not defend their own interests on their own.
Fear God of women.
You took their protection
from God,
and through God's words they became
your legal wives.
O people!
God, the Mighty and Exalted,
has commanded that everyone is entitled to his share. ”
In the twenty-first century, these words may sound backward and even barbaric to a
Westerner. Isn't Muhammad here explicitly giving men the right to punish their wives?
We must understand very well the social context in which these words were uttered.
Islam had greatly strengthened the position of women in society. When we compare
the words of God's Messenger with the practices of the time of jahilliya, we
immediately see a great difference. Before that, husbands were allowed to treat their
wives at their discretion. Women belonged more to the livestock than to the family.
Only men had rights. Islamic law had given women a say in all matters concerning
their own lives. No one was allowed to marry a woman without her personal consent.
Women had the right to inheritance, the right to testify in court, the right to be heard
politically.
When we see the words of God's Messenger within that emancipation movement, we
understand how well chosen they were. The Prophet not only spoke about the ideals of

41
Islam, he also clearly pointed out the great problems that still existed. He reaffirmed
women's rights, condemned domestic violence (no harsh punishments allowed) and
stressed the need for men to assist women. He also explicitly pointed out that women
were still in a weak position and therefore were not always able to defend their own
interests on their own.
God's Messenger then went on to elaborate on the personal responsibility of each
individual for his own actions.
“ No one is responsible for a crime
except the perpetrator.
A child is not responsible
for his father's crimes
and a father not
for the crimes of his child. ”
The Prophet also emphasized honesty and sincerity in the business world.
“ All debts must be repaid,
borrowed goods must be returned.
Gifts must be rewarded
with a gift of equal value
and guarantees must be sufficient
to offset losses.
Nothing from his brother
is allowed for a Muslim
except what he wants to give him himself.
So don't hurt yourself. ”
God's Messenger also emphasized the special responsibility of employers. After all,
employees must also be treated well and paid sufficiently. An employer must ensure
that his staff can lead a life as good as himself. Even slaves have the same rights as
members of the family.
" Treat your servants well
and give them food and clothes
as you take food and clothes for yourself."
Everything God's Messenger said in this Sermon on the Mount was a reaffirmation of
Islam as the people had come to know it. But he not only reaffirmed the precepts of

42
Islam, he also explained what those rules were for. The Ummah, Islamic Community
must be one brotherhood, in which everyone is given equal rights and opportunities.
“ Every Muslim
is the brother of every other Muslim
and all Muslims are one Ummah.
Obey your leader,
even if he is an Ethiopian slave,
as long as he reigns with God's Book.
No more prophet will come
after me and no new Ummah will arise after you.
Truly, I have left you that
which will never lead you astray: God's Book.
If you stick to that, you will never get lost. ”
God's Messenger was aware that the achievements of the Islamic revolution were very
early. He knew there was a danger that the former elite would try to regain its power
and its privileges. That danger was greatest if the Muslims became lax and less strict
about the rules of their religion. Those rules were made to limit the power of the elites,
a relaxation of those rules would automatically lead to new elites taking power and
exploiting and oppressing the ummah of the Muslims. That is why the Prophet
emphasized the importance of guarding the boundaries of religion.
“ Be careful not to cross the boundaries of religion,
for by crossing
it many have
brought destruction upon themselves before you .
Truly,
Satan is disappointed
that he is not worshiped in this land,
but he is content with every obedience,
even in the smallest details
that seem unimportant to you.
So beware of him in your religion.
Behold!
Worship your Lord,
pray prayer for Him five times a day,

43
 fast during the month of Ramadan,
pay the zakat of your possessions
and go on a pilgrimage to the house of God
and obey your leaders,
then you will enter God's paradise. ”
The importance of this speech is illustrated by a comment he made afterwards. He
called on all those present to share what they heard. This summary of the Islamic
teachings, the political testament of God's Messenger, had been heard by more than a
hundred thousand people and was passed on to many times more. For thousands of
Muslims, these words became the essence of Islam's political teachings.
However, we find the most surprising passage from Muhammad's Sermon on the
Mount at the very end. God's Messenger, at that time the most successful person in the
history of the Arab people, looks at his hundreds of thousands of followers and asks
them a question.
" O people!
When you are questioned about me,
what will you say? ”
The people replied, "We testify that you entrusted the religion to us and that you duly
fulfilled your duties as a Prophet and watched over our well-being."
God's Messenger pointed his finger to heaven and said:
" O Lord, witness this!"
This man, God's Messenger, who grew up as an orphan and at sixty-three is the most
powerful and respected statesman in the entire region, looked at his followers and
asked them if they liked what he had done. He had freed them from the oppression and
exploitation of the Quraishite elite, from the barbaric customs and customs of the time
of ignorance. He had given them righteous laws and freed their religion from idolatry
and commercial charlatanry. Yet he asked them if they thought all this was enough.
When God's Messenger had finished, those present left for home. No one really
believed that these were perhaps the last months of their beloved Prophet's life. How
could God allow His beloved prophet to die?

44
Muhammad's death

Not long after his last Hajj, the Prophet fell ill. He had a high fever and his condition
got worse quite quickly. On Wednesday, June 3, 632, in the eleventh year after the
Hijrah, he delivered a final sermon in the mosque. Once again he stressed the
importance of strict observance of the rules of Islam and of doing good to everyone
else. He also urged Muslims not to make his grave a place of pilgrimage as Christians
and Jews did with some of their saints and prophets. He ended his speech by releasing
all slaves assigned to him and distributing all of his property (seven pieces of silver) to
the poor and needy.
The next day he summoned the most important of his companions. He asked them to
get writing materials so that he could make a will with advice for the Ummah so that
he could never go astray. However, Umar said, “God's Messenger is very sick and in
pain. Why should we tire him with a will, we still have the Holy Quran? ” Some of
those present interrupted him, others agreed. There was a fierce discussion that only
ended when the Prophet ordered everyone to leave. Ibn Abas would later comment on
this, with tears in his eyes, that their bickering made it impossible for God's
Messenger to make his will.
The Prophet was already so weak that he could no longer lead the prayer in the
mosque itself. He had instructed Abu Bakr to do that in his stead. When the afternoon
prayer time came on Monday, it was Abu Bakr again who led the prayer. However,
God's Messenger gathered all his strength and stood in the doorway from where
everyone in the mosque could see him. Seeing all the Muslims praying together
behind his good friend, he smiled satisfied and went back inside. By the time of the
next prayer he would no longer be alive.
God's Messenger summoned his daughter Fatima and her husband, his cousin Ali. He
ordered Ali to pay off any outstanding debts. He also asked him if he would later wash
his body and prepare it for burial. Then he said goodbye to his daughter and to his two
grandsons Hasan and Hussein whom he loved dearly.
Most scholars agree that God's Messenger died on Monday, June 8 of the year 632.
Some scholars say he spent his last moments with his wife Aicha and others say he
was with his cousin and son-in-law Ali. We will probably never know for certain who

45
God's Messenger was with when he began his final journey. Only God knows the most
intimate details of the life of His Last Messenger.
As the News of Muhammad's death spread in Medina, chaos and turmoil ensued.
Nobody knew what to believe? Would God's Messenger Really Die? Had they not also
been mistaken about that at the battle of Uhud? Could this be gossip deliberately
spread by supporters of the ancien regime?
When Umar heard the news, he drew his sword and stormed out. He shouted to
anyone who would hear, “Hypocrites spread the lie that God's Messenger has died.
That is not true. He did not die, but traveled to God just like Moses. Like Moses, he
will come back and cut off the arms and legs of everyone who claims to be dead. ” To
calm the uproar, Abu Bakr tried to address the crowd. “To anyone who worships
Muhammad, know well that Muhammad has died. To anyone who worships God
alone, know that God never dies. ”
When the residents of Medina heard these words, the realization dawned that
Muhammad had really died. God's Messenger had completed his last commission and
had traveled to his Lord. Islam, which he had planted like a seed in the heart of his
people more than twenty years earlier, had grown into a strong tree that blossomed
beautifully and bore rich fruit.
God had truly sent his Messenger as a mercy to all worlds. He had been a warner and
a statesman, a rebel and a saint. He could have become the richest and most powerful
man in the Arabian Peninsula, but at his death he only had 7 dirhams to divide. He had
been a prophet like no one had ever been sent to this world before, and like none
would come after him.
However, the mourning after the death of God's Messenger soon gave way to a bitter
power struggle that would divide the entire Ummah. God's Messenger had not been
given the opportunity to designate his successor, and several companions felt they
would be the most suitable candidates for that role. The contradictions that then arose
within the Ummah were exacerbated by the increasing efforts of the erstwhile elite to
regain their privileges and power.

46
Table of Contents
Jahiliya.....................................................................................................4
From orphan to successful trader.............................................................7
Read, for God's sake................................................................................9
Persecution and oppression....................................................................12
The Hijra, migration in the name of God..............................................16
The City of the Prophet..........................................................................19
The Constitution of Medina...................................................................24
The revolution defends itself.................................................................27
The Battle of Badr.............................................................................29
The Battle of Uhud............................................................................32
The Battle of the Trench....................................................................33
The Huraybada Treaty.......................................................................35
The liberation of Mecca....................................................................37
The Farewell Pilgrimage........................................................................39
Muhammad's death................................................................................45

47
48